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(More customer reviews)Okay... so I've only had this clock for a few days now, so I can't comment on how long it'll last, but so far this is the best CD alarm clock I've been able to find for under $50 bucks!
It was important for us to get a CD alarm clock as we like to wake up to nature sounds. My old Timex had nature sounds and they sounded terrible, not to mention you could hear the speaker click on a few seconds before the alarm would go off, just enough to startle you awake.
Anyways, here's what I like about this RCA model versus a few others I tried. It allows you to wake to a CD (ability to pick from multiple tracks), color changing choices for the LCD which on dim mode is great for not lighting up a room at night! It's easy to use, I found the directions simple and understandable, I also found the wheel easy to use and not a problem to grab. The unit does make slight noise when waking from CD, you hear the drive spinning up and a slight click on the speaker, but it's not enough to wake us up. It's pretty darn quiet. The sound quality is very good compared to others in this size. By no means is it a hi-fi system, but it sounds good for its size. It has speakers on both sides so you get stereo sound versus many of the mono speaks on other clocks. I also like the generally simple square shape of the clock, others are awkward or huge! I considered some of the Sony's but they were gigantic for a CD alarm clock. The snooze is fair and is adjustable. The Philips I had snoozed in 5 minute increments and could not be adjusted at all, not to mention the screen was way too bright even in dimmed mode.
The RCA does have a gradual wake up, but it only works on the buzzer. It takes about 40 seconds to reach full volume. I tried a Philips that had gradual wake as well, and it took about 15 seconds to reach full volume. Both too short of time in my opinion. Both started at a medium volume and rose to loud. Wish they'd start at zero volume and rise over 2-3 minutes. Since we're waking to CD's it really doesn't matter. As long as the CD motor and speaker noises don't wake us up before the sound starts playing. I customize my CD's to fade in over 5 minutes so gradual wake isn't super important to us, but it is a nice option to have. The graduake only works on the buzzer for this RCA. I also like that the RCA has battery backup and the alarm will still sound if the power is out.
The RCA only gets 4 stars because the graduake feature only works on the buzzer mode, and the buzzer is nasty. It'd also be nice if the LCD had the option of orange and red to choose from. You get red when the alarm goes off, but not as a stable color choice. Setting the alarm times takes awhile as the forward and back buttons control just that, there's no independent hour and minutes adjustment... so you may have to hold the buttons down for a while. It'd also be nice to see what CD track is playing at any time, versus just for a few seconds when the new track begins. The RCA doesn't have a date display so I guess I'm out of luck if I forget what day or year it is. Otherwise, it works, it sounds better than most small clocks, and the little screen is super cool with decent color choices and won't blind you at night in dim mode! But hey, it's an alarm clock! :p
Update May, 2008: The other one thing that is slightly annoying, is the viewing angle. Other than straight on, I would say if you go beyond 30 degrees to either side you can't read the display. So far the alarm clock hasn't failed us. :)
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